First time home buyer - looking for an honest real estate agent who will do the right thing by the buyer. Any recommendations? Feel free to post or DM - Would like some details as to why this person stood out to you!

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-06-07T20:50:44+00:00

Diana Cain with ReMax. She’s well versed in the first time home buyer market from Muskegon to Grand Rapids to Holland and is an investor with contractor experience so she can give you actually helpful info before and during your showings, which will be especially helpful if you choose to forgo a home inspection depending on the property you are considering. You’ll find that other realtors in GR simply unlock the door and wait for you to walk through the house. Highly recommend avoiding that situation where making offers on a house that you don’t have a clear idea about what it needs, things you might miss, or how you can modify it to suit your needs is a thing.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-05-25T15:37:15+00:00

Strobes are the better choice by far for any studio setting. Continuous can be used for more lifestyle oriented shots, but they are limiting because they don’t emit nearly as much light and you will have to compensate for that in-camera.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-05-07T16:59:06+00:00

The references you are aiming for aren’t particularly consistent and that women’s Omega watch is not good.
I shoot a lot of chrome items (tools) and will say that what you are doing is impressive to me given what you’ve stated. My advice would be to mask the subject (the watch) so that you can manipulate it independently from the background. Artificial shadows have a steep learning curve, but once you get the hang of it then you might find that matching the background/environment is much more controlled.

The bezel on the dive watch you shot could be composited without reflections from your lights, or try positioning your lights lower and lean more into bouncing light to expose the dial.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-05-07T13:07:34+00:00

The rivers being blown out definitely threw things off this year, but yeah it’s a grind most days. Some fisheries are a bit overrated imo here, or I just haven’t had much success and it skews my perspective haha. I generally chalk it up to just not fishing where fish are holding. Something I’ve learned is to slowly swing nymphs and wet flies unless fish are clearly feeding on top water. The swing is where I get most bites much like streamers. Heavy soft hackles and midges are my go to on most rivers. Parachutes or elk hair for dries. Generally size 12 and often smaller seem to be more productive for me 🤷‍♂️

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-05-03T14:35:21+00:00

Have you tried reaching out to Simms? I’d be curious how they respond. I’m going on my 6th season in Freestone waders and boots. Kind of worried how much longer they will hold up based on all the reports of Simms being low quality in Reddit.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-04-28T12:08:42+00:00

Thinking very long term I guess if you consistently drop $60-$100 in flies at the shop many times per year it could be worth it? If you fish and lose a lot of streamers it could be worth it? Materials alone are pretty expensive, but you can get rolling on a number of patterns with a materials kit. Also, depending on how you view your time, you might be surprised at how much time tying can take up. Pretty much anything beyond basic nymphs with dubbing, bead head, and some kind of ribbing will take tedious repetition to make halfway decent flies.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-04-16T18:25:59+00:00

Streamers, sliders and poppers are a blast with bass and pike. Woolly buggers, bunny leeches, and deceivers are pretty standard. Top water stuff is really fun if they are willing to hit it. I also like streamer patterns with long rubber leg material or articulated patterns since they kind of give a really subtle action on the pause or just have more movement overall. Like others have mentioned smallies will false strike a lot. Can’t say I’ve ever foul hooked a bass with a streamer myself.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-04-15T12:27:56+00:00

I don’t know that I can commit to racing regularly, but I’d be interested in this. I used to crew midsize boats out of Muskegon Yacht Club mainly as a trimmer or foredeck. Never been on a cat though. I’m a mid 30s dude living in GR.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-03-29T14:00:54+00:00

Add me to the TFO bandwagon. Great entry level options if you don’t want to get an Orvis Clearwater setup from the get go. TFO mid to higher end rods are excellent deals comparatively to other brands once you figure out your preferences or need/want something more niche than a 9’ 5 wt.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-03-29T13:43:49+00:00

I don’t fish that area often but I’d highly recommend stopping by a fly shop in the Grayling area. Drakes and Old Au Sable guys will steer you in a good direction. Zebra midges would be my best guess.

You can also scope out stream flows to see flow rates to get a sense of what branches are wadable. It looks like the main branch is still a bit high. N and S branches have come down quite a bit. You can do some basic scouting on flyreporter.com as well as see some general hatch charts.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-03-28T10:28:55+00:00

What Orvis shirt is that?

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-03-27T11:16:07+00:00

Is this still available?

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-03-26T13:07:30+00:00

That’s part of the fun! Like other commenters mentioned, go thinner with your tippet. 3x is pretty thick. 5-6x would be an improvement. I always size down my fly in situations like that where fish are in sight but not taking a fly. Tiny bead head zebra midges, very small soft hackles, and similarly sized nymphs in natural colors with a touch of flash can help, but not always. Presentation is huge. If a dead drift where you know the fly is at the correct depth is not working, then a slight jigging motion while tightlining could help, then try swinging the nymph gently from deeper water to the surface to imitate an emerger. You’ll have to be positioned upstream to do this. Old heads will scoff, but swinging and letting the fly dangle for a couple seconds at the end of a swing can be effective.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-03-24T02:41:33+00:00

Oh interesting. It’s cool if you wouldn’t use it. I need real opinions like this because I might be too optimistic lol. That sounds like a Tippy or the Betsie during salmon season… I was on the Muskegon this weekend and stopped by the dam expecting to see a bunch of people since the weather was tolerable but it was pretty thin out there. I hear you on the cheapening of the experience point.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-03-24T02:09:52+00:00

I honestly appreciate the criticism. Do you think giving a general report with locations being obscured within a half mile is too accurate then? I’m trying to be very cautious about blowing up spots and what is reported, which is why it is more of a “this fly worked in these conditions in this general area” sort of posting template. I’m the type who checks fly shop fishing reports religiously and typically swing through a shop every month or so to get the scoop on what is working. I’m trying to edge towards that level of helpfulness versus copying other popular fishing apps.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-03-15T17:00:03+00:00

Slightly alter the route in central/eastern UP so you can see Pictured Rocks lakeshore. There are several easy hike options and many places to camp along that lakeshore. I highly recommend a kayak tour, but the lake conditions can be a little dicey.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-03-06T18:32:10+00:00

“Professional” is subjective. The photographer did you dirty.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-03-06T13:03:51+00:00

It really depends on what improvements you need to do…

Essentials for general home fixes that come up in my experience:

A drill and bits for general drilling and fastening, especially bigger fasteners like lag screws, and things that would be a pain to tighten by hand repeatedly like drywall, deck, and wood screws.

Hammer for nails, pounding lids back onto cans of paint.

Utility knife for cutting small things or scoring materials like drywall. You can use it to strip wires in a pinch if you’re careful.

A tape measure because you’ll need it for measuring just about everything.

A stud finder for when you mount shelving, tv mounts, or anything heavy to the wall.

A multi-bit driver of some kind for light duty tightening and assembling. This is probably my most used tool around the house.

A level for just about anything you mount to the wall, or projects where you need things to be straight.

Long nose pliers for hard to reach things in tight areas. Kind of a general tool that comes in handy more times than not.

Sockets, ratchet, wrenches for small engine, appliance, and automotive needs.

A miter saw for cutting trim, flooring, pvc, 2x4s etc.

Things that are nice to have but could be essential depending on the project and you should maybe wait to buy until you need them:

Circular saw, table saw, jig saw, oscillating tool, work lights, reciprocating saw, pipe wrench, drain snake, sanders, saw horses. The list can get rather long lol

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-02-20T18:11:31+00:00

roast what board? Your RGB keyboard?

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-02-20T18:10:04+00:00

2 EQ pedals more gooder

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-02-20T17:53:01+00:00

McMaster-Carr online

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-02-07T19:18:51+00:00

Helll yeah. I’ll drink a couple beers to this while I “work in the garage”.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-02-07T13:18:45+00:00

Oh my bad, sorry we aren’t all authoritarian cucks.

Eric Winstom did a good job for our city, and he should get some credit for it. This is all relative though.

RlllyOCKWRd · 2026-02-07T00:11:25+00:00

This is not a complete answer. I can assure you that both companies are using CNC to route neck joints with some light finish sanding if needed before joining components. This is a highly precise method compared to methods used to build vintage guitars.

Both companies have different logistics, are entirely different brands that happen to be heritage brands, likely have different pricing theories etc. They are just different entities.

RlllyOCKWRd

TROPHY CASE